Tramping on Life: An Autobiographical NarrativeKemp, Harry
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Tramping on Life: An Autobiographical Narrative
Kemp, Harry
Kemp, Harry, 1883-1960
"Jones is all right," said Penton to me, "I like his spirit. I'm going
to stand by him, if he finds himself seriously pressed, just because the
man's spirit is a good one ... nothing mean about him ... but I know
he'll place me among the snobs and wealthy of the community."
When all were gathered, as still as at the opening of a prayer meeting,
Grahame came in, and, with his son and other friends, took seats
opposite Jones. Grahame, who had been master of ceremonies and ring
master for the afternoon circus, had not changed his dress of
knee-britches and ruffed shirt.
The debate was prolonged and fiery....
Jones launched into a gallant attack on Grahame, and was replied to
evasively. Don Grahame wanted to punch Jones's head for what he called
slurs cast at his father's good name....
Penton made a famous speech reconciling, almost, the irreconcilable
parties.
And so we adjourned.
Penton and I accompanied Jones home. All the way the latter was arguing
against Baxter's plea, that he be more lenient with Grahame....
"You look out, Penton," Jones warned with genial firmness ... "Grahame
has been trying to persuade people in this community not to bring shoes
to me to be mended ... a dirty attempt to starve me out ... Oh, no!... I
haven't the slightest trace of persecution mania....
"And you'd better look out, Penton, and not play tennis this Sunday, for
I'm going to strike back at the tennis-playing snobs here, of whom
you're one."
"Jones, what do you mean by that? Surely not a bomb to smear us all over
the courts!" Penton joked.
"A bomb, yes ... it will be a bomb of sorts ... but I warn you you
shan't play games on Sunday any more. I'll see to that ... not that I've
unexpectedly grown religious, but that I mean to strike back as pettily
as the way in which I'm being persecuted."
* * * * *
"I suppose he means the Blue Laws," Penton commented seriously, "but
surely he can get no one to enforce them."
* * * * *
But Jones found a facetious officer of the law or so, down in
Philadelphia, who were as glad of a chance to molest a radical colony as
of an opportunity to put over a good joke....
Baxter, Grahame, Bedell, and others of the prominent members of the
community were haled in to court ... and, to the surprise of everyone,
sentenced to forty-eight hours hard labour on the rock-pile, in the
workhouse....
And Jones sang triumphant snatches of song and hammered away merrily at
shoes in his little shack along the road, while unused hands gathered
water blisters making big stones into little ones, with other and
heavier hammers.
The newspapers made a great to-do about the matter. The affair was just
serio-comic enough to attract nation-wide attention. And the story was a
good one--the story of the anarchist-shoemaker who invoked the use of
archaic, reactionary laws, in his battle against his less radical
antagonists, the Single Taxers and Socialists.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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